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Friday, 28 August 2015

A Forgotten Place- Feature Film By Odera Ozoka & Ashley Ellis.

Earlier this year while attending Cannes Film Festival and having the
time of my life I had the pleasure of meeting amazing filmmakers from all over
the world. It is good to meet people and have conversation but it is even
better to secure working relationships and true friendships. It brings me such
pleasure to write about the two people on Filmbugg. Meet Odera Ozoka and Ashley
Ellis. This duo is working on an amazing project that I am so excited
about it. They have teamed up to create Odera’s vision, his feature film A Forgotten Place.

I remember seeing Odera and Ashley at the South African tent in Cannes and again at the South African party and I remember thinking how 'pretty that mixed race South African girl looks'. We met properly a little while later though and started chatting. Ashley had told me the Intention of attending Cannes was to secure funding and partnerships with various production companies especially across Africa because of their feature film. This raised my Interests, we exchanged cards and have kept in contact ever since.

Odera and Ashley, are Los-Angeles based. The film is set to be shot across Africa namely South Africa and Nigeria. They have been doing some location scouting and holding castings at this phase of production.

Odera and Ashley with Milly Moabi. South African Producer who is working with them for the South African leg of the Production.

A
FORGOTTEN PLACE

A Forgotten Place is a narrative feature film set during the
Nigerian Civil War. As the Nigerian army kills Igbos &occupies major towns
in Biafra. Three human beings, a Young boy, a Woman and a Wounded soldier cross
paths in a volatile and dangerous Biafra as they walk their path. The story moves between
reality and surrealism, creating worlds within the tale. A story of war, pain,
the human spirit and survival A Forgotten Place is an African tale that will
without a doubt be unforgettable.

Here is an Interview with Ashley and
Odera to get more of an idea of their vision and what is in store for A
Forgotten Place.

Odera Ozoka- Director.

Filmbugg:

When was
the very first time you had the idea for A Forgotten Place? How did that spark
come to you and what was the Inspiration?

Odera Ozoka:

The idea of telling A Forgotten Place came to me right after my first
feature film won the audience award at Pan African Film Festival back in 2010.
I had been thinking of a story to immerse myself in and get involved with and
couldn't quite figure out what that would be until I went to Nigeria to visit
after being away for 10 years. I completely fell in love with my country again,
and had a profound experience while visiting for 3 months. Immediately I knew I
wanted to tell a story that will be filmed in the country and that really got
me going. So there you have it, falling in love with the country, it's hard
working citizens, the cultures and food all accumulated in getting me focused
on the path of telling the Biafran story.

FB:

As a
Director and Storyteller, what is the creative vision you have for the film.

OO:

A lot of what I have planned visually cannot be talked about or better
yet should not be talked about because it would ruin the surprise! I will say
this though, Ashley and I are putting together an amazing group of talent from
all walks of Africa and beyond. From musicians, to painters. From architects,
to costume designers. Different talents
will be collaborating on this film, so I am looking forward to working with
some great talent from all over the continent. This will be an African film
inside out, but I will be assisted by an international crew that brings a
universal knowledge in every facet of Cinema. Their collaboration with me will
help elevate my film to a world standard so that's exciting. Finally on a personal
level for me, I want to tell a damn good cinematic story, one that doesn't shy
away from our history, but instead embraces our past because it's the only way
to understand our future.

FB:

The tale
is that of a journey of three individuals heading towards their own
destinations. What is the scale of the production as you would like to see it.

OO:

The exciting challenge with a film like this, is balancing two important
levels. On one hand, I have to protect the core of the film-which is the human
element of the story dealing with three main individuals as they struggle to
survive war intact, transcending hate to hopefully finding the common good that
exists in all of us. On the other hand I want to say to the world ‘You have not
seen Africa yet’, and I want to show you it's beauty. I mean this continent has
so much natural Beauty that I hope to capture as many of it as possible. That
aspect of the story telling I promise, will be grand. It will be a spectacle.

FB:

You are a
Nigerian filmmaker, how personal is this story to you?

OO:

The story is very personal to me. My parent survived the war. But
sadly a lot of other sons and children can't say the same. So this story is for
them, and those who gave their life in the struggle. I am very passionate about
this story because it is mine as a Nigerian, but ours as Africans and
understanding what happened in the past, is the only way to understanding how
to tackle our future especially for the younger generations who are being born
into this complex world.

FB:

You talk
about the film not just being a film, you want it to drive conversation. What
is the intention of the film for you, where and who would you like to see it
reach and if applicable what would be the 'Movement' for A Forgotten Place?

OO:

I'd certainly love the film to reach Africans in Africa, and the
diaspora. Blacks in America and around the world and finally other people of
colour, who are curios and open to seeing a human story told from an Africans
point of view. My intention with this film is varied. Most importantly like I
mentioned on ourwebsite A Forgotten Place, is a story that will start a
real and much needed conversation if we let it, because there are still a lot
of unanswered questions, and a lot of healing
that needs to be done. This film hopefully starts that train so we as a
country and nation end up being better off for it down the line.

Ashley Elllis- Producer.

Filmbugg:

What
is the current status of the production?

Ashley
Ellis:

We've just officially started
pre-production, which means that we have lots to do! We're in negotiations with
investors and business partners. We are busy assembling the right team of
creative’s and key crew, and are just about to embark on location scouting
across Nigeria, South Africa and regions near the two countries. Casting is
another aspect of the project that we're very excited to announce soon. It's
lots of hard work, but they're all inspiring parts of the filmmaking process.
We're also launching a campaign on Seed & Spark, an amazing platform for
indie filmmakers, and we encourage everyone to get involved and support us!

FB:

What is it
about the film that made you a believer and join the team?

AE:

This is something that I recently wrote about in my producer's
statement (of sorts). Today, when there are emerging film industries the world
over, in a lot of ways it's never been more challenging to take a project from
a concept to a wide audience. Independent producing is long, hard work and
requires so much perseverance. I only work on stories that are very important
to me and will sustain me. I make films, because I want to tell stories that
make people reflect upon where humanity has been and challenge them to think
about their personal role in where we are going, the shared human experience
that will be our future. A Forgotten Place does both of those things. The
Biafran War is the setting and of the utmost importance for the people of
Nigeria to discuss, but the story has contemporary relevance across Africa and
the world over, in countries that are experiencing conflict or a continued
struggle for economic and cultural independence post colonialism.

As a creative, I was also really intrigued by all of the elements of
the story that we get to bring to life, from whole villages that we'll
construct to traditional Nigerian masquerade costumes, to the music and sounds,
the film is ripe with history, culture, art, colour, and texture, and we get
the opportunity to create a visual experience that is entirely new and unique.

Odera and I have known each other for many years, and I've always had
the utmost respect for him as an artist. The film presented an opportunity for
me to do what I love and also work with Odera for the first time.

FB:

I
understand that the film would like to be shot in three different parts of
Africa. As a producer what needs to be done to ensure that all this takes
place.

AE:

We're still discussing locations, but we know that we'll be shooting
in Nigeria and South Africa, and are searching for some specific landscapes,
possibly in other countries on the continent as well. You know, Africa is just
ripe with natural beauty, so the biggest challenge that we have there is
staying focused despite the overwhelming amount of options! After narrowing
down the specific locations, there's a ton of moving parts. We have to find the
right local partners who know the lay of the land, crew that is experienced
working in these environments, and we have to take into account all of the
challenges of bringing necessary equipment into some of the most rural of
locations. As the producer, it's my responsibility to assemble all of the
pieces that will make production run as smoothly as possible.

FB:

You have
come to Africa before on your own film project, you were in Botswana. Your
interest for Africa is alive and active. What hopes do you have for A Forgotten
Place that has a true African storyline.

AE:

Yes, I was
lucky enough to direct my very first film in Botswana, After We Lost Shima which after many years, will be released by the year's end. Making that film
was an incredible experience that cemented my desire to tell stories of the
diaspora, but as a documentary, it is a very different project than A Forgotten
Place. While my film was made by a small crew and focuses on a very specific
community and subject, A Forgotten Place is much more expansive in narrative
and as a production. My hope is that it is truly a Pan-African project with
diversity in shooting locations, business partners, artistic talents, and crew
that reflects this. My hope is that it shows the world the cinematic excellence
that Nollywood has to offer. And my hope is that it captivates a global
audience and adds to a new wave of interest in stories from the continent and
African diaspora.

Add link:

FB:

You and
Odera attended The Cannes Film Festival 2015.Going in what were your intentions
and having walked away, how effective was the time spent there in line with the
production.

AE:

We really didn't know what to expect from the experience, because it
was the first time that either of us had attended the festival and film market.
The production team worked really hard to sift through thousands of companies
listed in order to find those who are like-minded, and we just took a chance
and started reaching out. We also joined the Producer's Workshop. The result
was excellent. We had many successful meetings, met young filmmakers from
around the world, and are already working with some of the contacts we
established on A Forgotten Place. We posted some helpful tips for filmmakers
planning their first Cannes trip on our FB page too.

Filmbugg will be part of the journey as I chronicle the progress of
Forgotten Place that will most certainly get bigger as time moves.

Profile

Ashley Ellis attended the University of Southern California where her passion for filmmaking
was realized and issues such as human rights, social justice and conservation
are close to her heart.

Ashley
directed and produced her first film, After We Lost Shima, in northern Botswana.....

Full information on the website.

Odera Ozoka is a filmmaker who believes in art at all costs. Born in Benin, Nigeria,
Odera moved to Los Angeles to pursue his dream as an actor, but became
passionate about directing while attending The New York Film Academy.

After
graduating, he wrote his third feature film script and began prep on what would
be his directorial debut, which became the twelve-day shootSoul
Diaspora.He went on to produce plays with the theater
company Sacred Drum Theater and was part of the producing team of the filmIje.......

Full information on the website.Raise Funds.At this stage raising funds is high priority. Show support by going to the site and giving and spreading the word. Seed and Sparkfor fund raising.